Possessive Adjectives: Definition, Examples, and Usage Guide

Possessive adjectives (or 'determiners') are words like my, your, his, her, its, our, and their that show possession. They always go with a noun (e.g., my book).

It's easy to confuse possessive adjectives with possessive pronouns (e.g., mine, yours, his).

What are Possessive Adjectives?

Possessive adjectives are words that we use to say who owns something. We also use them to show relationships. For example:

• It was her idea. (the idea belonged to her)
• That's my car. (the car belongs to me)
• That man is his dad. (he has a relationship with that man)

Examples of Possessive Adjectives

Here is a table of personal pronouns with their possessive adjectives, and some examples.

*Whose means "belonging to someone". As a possessive adjective, it comes before a noun. We often use it in questions to ask who something belongs to, for example, "Whose shoes are these?". We can also use it as a possessive pronoun on its own, for example,"Whose are these?", where it replaces the noun.

We can also use 'whose' to introduce a relative clause to give extra information about the owner of something. For example, "We talked to a couple whose child took part in the Olympics".

Common mistakes

In English, we often use possessive adjectives with body parts, personal things, and daily activities. A common mistake is using the definite article (the) or reflexive pronouns (myself, yourself) because it sounds more natural in other languages.

For example:

• English: My head hurts / I washed my hands / I forgot my homework
• Other languages: I hurt me the head / I washed me the hands / I forgot the homework

We often use a possessive adjective (my, your, his, her, our, their) when we talk about our own body, things that belong to us, or activities connected to ourselves.

• Body parts / clothes: my hand, her hair, his shoes
• Personal things: my phone, our house, their car
• School / work: my homework, his job, her project

Next, it's easy to confuse possessive adjectives with other words, because they sound the same or look very similar. Even native speakers confuse these sets of words!

Its vs It's

Its and it's sound the same, but they have different meanings and uses.

Its is a possessive adjective which means 'belonging to'.

• The dog played with its ball. (The ball belongs to the dog.)
• The company changed its logo last year. (The logo belongs to the company.)
• The tree lost its leaves in winter. (The leaves belong to the tree.)

It's is a contraction (short form) of 'it is' or 'it has'.

• It's a sunny day today. (= It is a sunny day.)
• It's been a long day. (= It has been a long day.)
• It's not a big problem. (= It is not a big problem.)

Their vs they’re

Their and they’re are confusing because they sound the same, but they also have different meanings.

Their is a possessive adjective meaning 'belonging to'.

• This is their car. (The car belongs to them.)
• The students handed in their homework on time. (The homework belongs to the students.)
• I love their new house near the park. (The house belongs to them.)

They're is a contraction of 'they are'.

• They're late for the meeting. (= They are late.)
• They're watching a movie right now. (= They are watching.)
• They're planning a trip to Italy. (= They are planning.)

Whose vs who's

In a similar way, whose and who's are also confusing because they sound the same, but their meanings are also very different.

Whose is a possessive adjective which means 'belonging to'. We use it to ask or say who something belongs to.

• Do you know whose phone this is? (= Who does this phone belong to?)
• Whose bag is on the chair? (= Who does this bag belong to?)
• I met a woman whose brother works abroad. (= The woman who is connected to her brother.)

Who's is a contraction of 'who is' or 'who has'.

• Who's coming to the party? (= Who is coming…?)
• Who's ready to start the game? (= Who is ready…?)
• Who's been using my laptop? (= Who has been using…?)

Your vs you're

Your is a possessive adjective that means 'belonging to you'.

• Is this your pen? (Does this pen belong to you?)
• Don't forget to bring your keys. (The keys belong to you.)
• I really like your new haircut. (The haircut belongs to you.)

You're is a contraction of 'you are'.

• You're my best friend. (= You are my best friend.)
• You're very kind. (= You are very kind.)
• You're going to love this film. (= You are going to love this film.)

Conclusion

We use possessive adjectives (my, your, his, her, its, our, and their) to show who something belongs to. They always come before a noun, and they tell us who owns or is connected to that noun.

It's easy to confuse them with possessive pronouns (mine, yours, hers, ours, theirs) or contractions like it's, you're, and they're, but remember:

• Possessive adjectives go before a noun.
• Possessive pronouns replace the noun.